To contact playwrights, write to:

Center of the World Festival

P.O. Box 1929

Frazier Park, CA 93225-1929

Butterfly Dancing

BUTTERFLY DANCING

Written by Patricia A. Maez

Opening Ceremonies: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Synopsis: A cautionary tale about the vagaries of fate—fairy tale style.

Common Denominators

COMMON DENOMINATORS

Written by Louis Medina

Third Place Winner: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Theme: Native or immigrant, “Okie” or “Mexican,” young or old, people are the same—they just need to find one another’s common denominators.

Synopsis: On the residential streets of Oildale, a retired oil field worker and his wife meet the challenge of accepting their new neighbors, a young Hispanic couple.

Crazy Day

CRAZY DAY

Written by David Muschell

Finalist: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Theme: A man witnesses a terrible tragedy and deals with the conflicting moral results.

Synopsis: A man sees his best friend commit a hit and run, involving the death of a young boy, and must decide whether to report him.

Dear Despicable Dictator

DEAR DESPICABLE DICTATOR

Written by Katherine King

Finalist: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Theme: Focused letter writing is a very effective way to end oppression and conflict.

Synopsis: A group of five people gather in a coffee shop to write letters on behalf of people unjustly imprisoned or tortured or sentenced to die.

Dreams to Fly

DREAMS TO FLY

Written by Devin M. Jacintho

Opening Ceremonies: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Synopsis: Two sisters go out of their comfort zone and into the forest to find the secrets to fly and touch the stars.

Ear of the Hurricane

EAR OF THE HURRICANE

Written by Randy Gross

Finalist: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Theme: Four people confront their pre- & post-Katrina conflicts and life-changing experiences.

Synopsis: Four characters inside a New Orleans café discuss their failings, regrets, and life-changing experiences as they wait for an anonymous filmmaker to arrive to record their stories.

“IF” is the Only Peacemaker

“IF” IS THE ONLY PEACEMAKER

Written by Shelia Clark

Second Place Winner: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Theme: Classical literature helps to resolve a conflict arising from misinterpretation of the other’s actions.

Synopsis: A woman tells her mentor about a “slapping” insult from a best friend over flirting behavior.

God v. Satan

GOD V. SATAN

Written by Barbara Ladin

First Place Winner: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Theme: Old family conflicts face the challenge of resolution.

Synopsis: Many years after Satan tried to overthrow the Kingdom of God, they run into each other at a grocery store.

Roll with the Punches

ROLL WITH THE PUNCHES

Written by Lee Dunnavant

Finalist: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Theme: Persistence and the passage of time is sometimes the key to bringing closure to conflict.

Synopsis: A woman seeks closure to a fatal accident by making contact with the husband of the deceased woman.

T.P. Chronicles

T.P. CHRONICLES

Written by Laurelyn E. Irving

Fourth Place Winner: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Theme: A residence hall director mediates between four college students, who share a suite, to resolve a heated conflict.

Synopsis: Two athletic college basketball players and two fastidious roommates argue over toilet paper.

Waiting For Women

WAITING FOR WOMEN

Written by Lonon Smith

Finalist: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Theme: A male viewpoint and a paradoxical way to resolve intrafamily conflict.

Synopsis: Five men with conflicting relationships to two women wait for the women to get ready.

Weighing In

WEIGHING IN

Written by Rachel York-Bridgers

Finalist: 2009 Peaceful Conflict Resolution Competition

Theme: In a post-Katrina school setting, two women deal with the conflict created by institutional rules and use human connectedness to bring resolution.

Synopsis: A woman whose daughter is denied admission challenges the school principal.